2013 Dred Scott Project

Legacy of Courage and Freedom: Dred & Harriet Scott

Hosted by Chief Judge Michael J. Davis and Judge Donovan W. Frank

The Dred Scott Project - Frank White approached Chief Judge Michael J. Davis several months ago asking if there was any way the federal court could help get an interpretive sign for the Dred Scott Playing Fields in Bloomington since the sign gave no indication as to who Dred Scott was. Mr. White also indicated that many students these days do not know who Dred Scott was or even who Martin Luther King, Jr. was. This began a collaborative effort called the Dred Scott Project by the United States District Court - District of Minnesota, the Minnesota Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, the Bloomington Human Rights Commission, and Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department.

The Project was multi-faceted and included the 2013 Open Doors to Federal Courts program which included a PowerPoint presentation to 13 American History classes at both Bloomington Jefferson and Bloomington Kennedy High Schools, a living history presentation by actors portraying Dred and Harriet Scott and Frederick Douglass, and a Judicial Panel consisting of four African-American judges; the Minnesota Chapter of the Federal Bar Association hosting Lynne Jackson, Dred Scott's great-great-granddaughter as their May 22, 2013 FBA Luncheon speaker; and a "Legacy of Courage and Freedom: Dred and Harriet Scott" event that was free and open to the public at the Bloomington Civic Plaza on May 22, 2013, that included the living history re-enactment, a keynote address by Lynne Jackson, and a presentation of the new interpretive plaque for the Dred Scott Playing Fields that even includes a QR reader that will bring a visitor to the City of Bloomington's website for even more information on Dred Scott.

The PowerPoint presentation (found below - in PDF format) was created to not only memorialize the above events, but to be used as an educational tool that can be passed on to schools to keep Dred and Harriet Scott's legacy of courage and freedom alive in the schools today.